Love at First Sight - Sort of
by fevildevil
Summary: A Valentine's Day one shot with an annoying little love akuma. When Marinette is placed under a spell before she can transform, she doesn't know what to do. Thankfully, she can always rely on her partner for any help.


Why did it always have to be love akumas?

Perhaps it was just that people had fragile hearts. Anger, and sadness, and negative emotions stemmed most easily from the passions of the heart. Regardless of that fact, it didn't make Marinette any less appreciative of the love themed akuma's attacks.

She never seemed to have a Valentine's Day to herself. Not that she had had a valentine with which to spend it with. But it went without fail that at least one akuma victim would find its way into the day.

This particular love akuma loved to make people fall in love. A little sprinkle of her love dust, and the victim would fall in love with the first person they saw. Apparently, she believed that everyone needed to find love on Valentine's Day, and she was going to be sure of it.

Marinette stood in what seemed to be in a state of panic on the streets of Paris, watching as couples formed left and right, fiercely displaying their affection in ways that made her most unnerved. Although some of the matches were rather bizarre, she was not too bothered by the coupling of her teacher and Adrien's bodyguard. How they found each other in the mess of panic, she could not think.

Just as she was stumbling to find a quiet place to transform, she had the unfortunate luck to come face to face with the leading lady herself. The Matchmaker flew toward her, small, likely ineffective wings, fluttering as fast as they could. Marinette ran the other way, looking around frantically for an escape. It really wasn't the right time for this to be happening. If only she had given her 30 more seconds.

In the midst of her search, she briefly saw Chat Noir. He followed quickly after her, noticing immediately the urgency of the situation. Regrettably, it was all for naught. The Matchmaker zoomed overhead and block Marinette's path, startling her. Her heart skipping a beat, the young girl didn't hesitate to shut her eyes, knowing full well of what was to come.

Satisfied with her work, the Matchmaker flew off to terrorize other citizens. Marinette froze. What was she supposed to do now? She couldn't very well walk around blindly. And she surely couldn't transform into Ladybug. The second she would open her eyes, she'd be under the Matchmaker's spell and Ladybug would be indisposed. She wouldn't exactly be of any help.

Her senses were on full alert. If she took a step, she could trip. As far as she remembered, the street was clear. But then what? How would she know if she was well hidden? And even if she managed to hide herself and transform, would she? If she did, she still wouldn't be able to open her eyes. Marinette was on the verge of tears trying to decide.

"Marinette!" a voiced called out to her. A hand landed on her shoulder and she screamed, moving away from it and pushing the nearby body. "Marinette!" the voice cried again, in closer proximity this time. Whoever it was, was trying desperately to grab hold of her arms as they flailed and strained to break free. "Princess!" That word alone was enough to stop her.

"Chat?" she asked, relieved at the idea that her partner had found her. It was likely because she had given him a look of urgency moments before, but regardless his presence was reassuring. Her body relaxed significantly, and his hands loosened from her wrists and slid down to tangle his fingers in her own. She would let this go for the time being. "Chat, I-."

"I saw," he interrupted. "I'll take you home." Chat Noir scooped her up decisively and she could feel the air rush by her as he flew threw Paris. She closed her eyes as tightly as ever. There was no doubt that she loved her partner, but she loved him _as_ her partner and as one of her best friends. This was not the time to be thinking about anything else. The only thing she had time for in that moment was figuring out how to free herself from the Matchmaker's spell.

"Thank you, Chat," Marinette muttered into his ear. He held her closer and more tightly to his chest, not knowing what to say. They landed on her terrace and he put her down. She stood awkwardly, trying to find her positioning in the space. Chat shuffled down the ladder and grabbed a small piece of fabric lying in her room, wrapping it around her eyes.

"Keep them shut. I'm going to go find a way to at least drive the akuma into hiding. It's all I can do for the time being."

"Well," Marinette said, wondering about what her next steps would be, "when you finish with that, you should hide here and we can think of a plan or something. Together."

"I don't know where Ladybug is, but when she arrives, the whole thing will blow over. Don't worry. I'll come back to check on you." He rested a hand on her shoulder and was gone in seconds.

Of course he came back. Ladybug was nowhere to be found and it didn't exactly come as a surprise to her. How was she supposed to save the day when she was basically blind? She had managed to find her way to her bed and took a seat, waiting for Chat to return and listening to the distressed words of Tikki. The minute the boy had returned, Tikki flew back to Marinette's purse. It occurred to her that this might not have been the best case scenario.

"What now?" Chat Noir asked, dejected. She wished she could give him a look of sincerity and some sort of physical contact to comfort him, but the thought o missing was just a bit embarrassing.

"Maybe she's just being held up somewhere in civilian form," Marinette reasoned.

"Or maybe she's been hit with the Matchmaker's spell," he muttered in reply. He didn't need to finish the sentence for her to know what he implied. The thought of his Ladybug off making out with a random civilian was not a pleasant one for him. It seemed just as unpleasant as the idea that Adrien could have possibly been making out with someone as well. She understood. There was no malice in his tone, but Marinette still flinched at the fact that he had been right.

"What should we do?" she wondered aloud. She wasn't sure if she was expecting an answer but she didn't get one.

"Pray for mercy? Even if I've broken her bag, the akuma was never purified so the effects of the spell didn't go away." Marinette pouted, attempting to lighten the mood.

"Well that's no good. You're not exactly my dream boy Chat." A grin stretched across her face immediately after the statement. Chat Noir laughed good naturedly.

"I'm hurt, Princess. I think I'd be a pretty paw-some person to fall in love with if I do say so myself." Marinette laughed and pushed at wherever she thought his shoulder ought to be. At least, that had been her intention. He had been laying down unbeknownst to her, and as she pushed, she fell. Chat fumbled to keep her from falling, but the deed had been done, and her blind fold had managed to shift in the mess. Marinette's adrenaline raced as she saw Chat Noir's face inches from hers. She stiffened and screamed as he did the same. She was half expecting herself to throw herself at him, seeing as she was already so close. They didn't take their eyes of one another for a long while, and when nothing happened, faces reddened.

"Marinette? Are… are you okay?" Chat Noir asked hesitantly.

"… I think I am," she replied, entirely dumbstruck by the situation.

"You were hit by the Matchmaker… weren't you?" His eyes searched her face for signs of change. Marinette nodded.

"I was. I'm sure of it."

"Then why-?"

"I don't know." Her eyes shifted away in thought before she realized how she was positioned. It hardly occurred to either of them that her entire body was pressed up against his. She awkwardly pushed herself away from him, her heart racing as she sat up. Why didn't it work? Not that she had wanted for it work. But never before had she seen an akuma attack reign ineffective. For a second, nothing was said.

"Maybe you're already so in love with me, there wasn't anything left for the magic to do," Chat Noir teased, breaking the tension. For just the shortest of moments, she considered this, and the thought scared her. She loved Chat Noir, but no more than she loved Adrien. Whatever she felt for the boy sitting in her room, it wasn't worth it. A smile broke out on her face that matched the mischievous one on his.

"In your dreams, Chat," she laughed, shoving his shoulder with a little bit more accuracy. "Go now, I don't need to be protected or helped anymore. It doesn't really matter why it didn't work. Go find Ladybug, and fix this mess."

"If you insist." Chat Noir leapt up onto terrace and given the back of her hand a quick kiss before soaring off. "Until next time, Princess."

The minute he left, Marinette ran back into her room and cried out for Tikki. Hopefully, Chat Noir wouldn't make the connection. As she left the comfort of her home in search for the small purple butterfly, she couldn't help but think about what he had said. It didn't matter why the spell hadn't worked. But if Chat was right, the she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do. Whatever had happened, this Valentine's Day had given her the gift of complete and thorough confusion.

 **Author's Note:** This idea came from gigiree on tumblr.

I wrote half of this kind of drunk off of a migraine but I'm impressed by how it turned out. Happy Valentine's Day! I hope that however you're spending the day, it is one filled with comfort.


End file.
